We are proud to announce the first stage towards the release of our new quiz app, QUEST. After 6 loooong years looking into the practicalities, and going down some disappointing dead ends, we are finally ready to unveil the first part of our latest innovation...

July's Grand Prix will see us testing the part of QUEST that will enable us to run multi-site events. For most of you, the event will be same as usual but you will be REQUIRED to register beforehand. There will also be two discrete test sites comfortably far enough from Rochester so as not to derail the event Ken puts so much effort into every year. We have already conducted some behind-the-scenes tests, but now we want to see how people who’ve hitherto not been involved cope with it. We also need to get EVERYONE used to the idea of having to register in advance, rather than simply turn up unannounced.

Assuming the test works, August will see us running 7-10 proctored local sites around the UK, as a final test of this part of the system. Full information will be given about how these will work, and the requirements for running them, after the July GP.

While we will all be able to enjoy major gatherings for things like the British, European, and World Championships, there are a number of benefits to making a number of our monthly events multi-site - with venues around the country proctored by experienced and trusted Grand Prix regulars of course.

As well as saving you the expense and time of travelling to locations a long way from where you live (and reducing the time away from family etc.), we hope that the accessibility and lower cost implications will both encourage and facilitate much greater attendance. And while it will be open to local proctors to add-on team quizzes etc. to the core Grand Prix and Hot 100 quizzes, smaller multi-site events should enable us to avoid large catering, venue, and administration costs, enabling us to slash the price of admission.

Multi-site events will also be a boon to those living in the less accessible corners of the UK, or where certain journeys to a single, central venue can be problematic – e.g. some east-west travel via public transport can be particularly difficult. However, those of you who crave the monthly meet-up need not despair. It is Chris’ intention to organize a “travelling venue”, each time picking a different, attractive location that meets the needs of 10 to 40 enthusiasts, but which perhaps aren’t practical for the 100+ numbers that events are now regularly attracting. Places on his hit list include the Cumbria/Lancashire border, Hay on Wye and Wells in Somerset.

The plan from 2017 onwards then is to run circa. four big events a year, with everyone coming together, but with the others as locally based, multi-site events. Approved venues outside of the UK will also be able to play along, but not for our UK rankings points.

The system will later see you all allocated user names and being able to enter your scores (massively speeding up the publication of results etc.) and in so doing you will be able, should you wish, to enter results question-by-question – allowing you to monitor your progress against each other and see the topic areas where you come out top. It will also be possible to filter results, by player type/location, enabling you to create custom-made league tables for your area, local league, nation, or just populate it with people you regularly finish above  We also hope to develop the app in a way that will enable you to test yourself on questions you’ve previously played.

But for now, we just want to get the locally based, multi-site events running.

Please don't email or post asking for more info on all this yet. We know you will want all the details, but first we want to check this little bit works in a live situation. We have got rules and regulations drawn up already and things are very far advanced, so will give you chapter and verse when we are ready to move to the next stage of the release. (And we're stacked out after the WQC, so we don't have time at the moment to talk to people individually about QUEST just yet.)